A discussion of safety in the Performing Arts for professionals, students, teachers, and administrators. A sometimes terrifying look at some surprising conditions, what you might do about them; and how to plan for better safety in your facility, teaching program, and career.

Wednesday, March 12, 2014

Anaheim, California 2014-03-10 - Students performing an energetic dance routine on the extended forestage at Servite Catholic High School were injured when the stage collapse into the Orchestra Pit below. The auditorium was originally constructed in the 1980's and the stage extension / pit cover was added in 1996. Images from the accident scene show what appears to be a modular structure that was built by the school, not a commercially available staging system.

Local Police and Emergency Rescue were called to the scene to extract injured performers and transport them to the hospital as needed. Some injuries were minor scrapes and bruises, and sprained ankles, while 24 students were transported, some on back-boards with possible neck and back injuries, and a report of broken bones.

Looking into the Orchestra Pit after the Stage Extension Collapsed
(Photo Courtesy of the Anaheim Police Department)

The structure will be inspected to discover the exact nature of the failure. Although persons interviewed by local papers said that the collapse was unforeseeable (blogger comment: not likely), and later comments (in the follow-up section of this post) show that there was some forewarning (visible sagging) prior to the floor giving-way.

The Anaheim Fire Marshal and Building Inspectors were on scene Sunday investigating what caused the collapse, said Lt. Tim Schmidt of the Anaheim Police Department. “It looks like, on its face, that too much weight was on the stage than what it was originally built for,” Schmidt said Sunday night.

The high school's platform stage was previously permitted for use, Schmidt said. Now investigators will be rechecking that permit to see if it included a weight restriction or a limit as to the number of people who could safely be on the stage at one time.

Schmidt said he expected the investigation, which is being led by the Anaheim Fire Department, to take up to two weeks. He added that Servite has been cooperative in the investigation. “They want to find out what happened as much as we do.”

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Alas, poor Yorick. He didn't heed the Safety Manual !

Safety is not a 'thing' or a book - it has to be a culture ingrained in your workplace. Every action by you or your co-workers must be continually examined to see if there is a better practice, procedure, or equipment to get the job done. Actions have consiquences. So do inactions.

You can't teach safety in a few of hours once a year. You have to continually discuss safety topics to keep them in the forefront of people's minds. The theatre is a dangerous place that is a mix of many different job descriptions, so rules and laws have to be researched and understood from many different sources. When you are loading a truck, you need to be a materials handling specialist, when you are flying scenery, you need to be a rigger, and when you are in the scene shop, you are on a construction site. Different skills sets and tools are required for each.